


From Ashes

by ShaneShenanigans



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-22
Updated: 2015-03-22
Packaged: 2018-03-19 02:39:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3593226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShaneShenanigans/pseuds/ShaneShenanigans
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dorian finally goes to speak with Alexius after the war ends. He finds something different than the worst he was expecting.</p>
            </blockquote>





	From Ashes

He found himself nervous, which wasn’t anything new. He was always worried about something, always something nagging in the back of his mind, making him want to hesitate, or turn away. He’d learned not to, but now it was hard. Standing outside that door in the dimly lit hall.

“Are you all right, ser?” The guard asked. She was polite, and had been throughout the process of escorting him and coming up with the right keys, and permissions. She seemed genuinely concerned.

Before Corypheus had been defeated, most of the Inquisition preferred to sneer at him. Now that he’d had a hand in helping end it, he was treated not only like a human being, but with respect.

“Fine, thank you.” He spoke quietly. He was sure his voice could be heard through the door, and that was it. If he walked away now, he’d look like a fool.

Carefully, he turned the handle, and stepped inside. Like the hall, the room was barely lit. But Alexius had always worked under few candles. He said it made it easier to focus on what was in front of him if it was the only thing illuminated. Dorian wasn’t sure it was entirely voluntary this time.

“You’re here.” Alexius spoke the moment he stepped into the room, and Dorian paused in the dark. “I was beginning to think you’d left for Tevinter.”

Dorian was glad. He was glad that Alexius was so quick to speak up, that he was willing to speak to Dorian at all.

“I’d thought about it.” Dorian replied, as casually as he could, but his voice betraying the presence of the eggshells beneath his feet with its softness. “I thought it better that I stay and clean up your mess.”

“My mess is cleaned, is it not? That’s what I’ve been hearing from the mages.”

“Yes, Corypheus is gone.” Dorian confirmed. “We beat him— the inquisiton beat him. It’s over.”

Alexius’s eyes drifted from the task him front of him to the floor at the corner of the room. “It’s been over for me for much longer.” He said, almost mumbling. Then he turned to face Dorian, and his voice became clearer. “Why are you here?”

“A friend…” Dorian began, then paused. “…he mentioned you. Insisted that I should talk to you.” He said. “I told him he was out of his mind, but once he got me thinking about it, that was it.”

Alexius looked away again. “I see.” He said. “A friend. I’m surprised someone like you was able to make friends here.”

“So was I.” Dorian said. “Turns out I’ve found a good number of them. I’ll probably be staying for a while.”

Alexius laughed sarcastically. “You and I both.” A wry smile cracked across his face.

Dorian paused a moment, opened his mouth, then shut it, looking away and furrowing his eyebrow, he shook his head. “The inquisitor… he told me that you wanted to die.”

Alexius hummed. “Yes, I do recall.”

Dorian forced his breath to calm. “Do you… do you still feel that way?”

Alexius glared at him sharply. “Would you end my life if I said yes?”

Dorian’s eyes widened, and there was a twang in his chest like it had been struck by an arrow. He didn’t answer the question.

“No.” Alexius said. “There are sufficient distractions. I’ve lowered myself to the point of having put a lot of hours in for these so-called mages. Felix would say I’ve done well for myself given the circumstances.”

Dorian smiled, glad to hear the name leave Alexius’s lips not drenched in sorrow. “Ever the optimist, he was.”

A smile—this time genuine— cracked on Alexius’s face. “He was.” He agreed, and the candle light flickered against his face as he reminisced.

“I’m so sorry.” Dorian broke the pleasant silence.

“You didn’t give him the blight.” Alexius didn’t want to hear it.

“I didn’t mean—,” Dorian shook his head. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there. I’m sorry that I abandoned you when you started to lose everything.”

“Don’t be a fool.” Alexius barked. “You were my apprentice. I failed you.”

“And you were my friend.” Dorian countered. Alexius looked at him in question. “I have a better idea of what that means, now.” He nodded, seeming rather certain of himself.

“You’re awfully forgiving,” Alexius replied. “As is this Inquisitor of yours. In truth I never expected to survive judgement. How much do you influence him, exactly?”

A tiny, sad smile quirked at the edge of Dorian’s lips. “You always were sharp to that sort of thing.” He knew Alexius could never approve. Not in the way his father disapproved— not because of who or what the Inquisitor was, but because of what he had foiled. Alexius would always see the Inquisition as what stood in the way of his plan to save Felix.

“Though to be fair, he appointed you for this without my knowledge. He’s just dreadfully naive, is the thing. I would have had your head on a stick.”

Alexius chortled, though with sarcasm. “So I’ve heard. The guards discuss that the cells are filling up with venatori due to lack of executions.”

“That’s our inquisitor.” Dorian confirmed. “He’d take darkspawn under his wing if they convinced him they were sorry for what they’d done.”

“Something his enemies will no doubt take advantage of.” Alexius criticized.

“I’m not giving you ideas, am I?” Dorian snickered.

Alexius scoffed. “I’ve been stripped of my rank and power in Tevinter. I have no reason to oppose what I’ve been given if have if I have nowhere else to go.”

Dorian nodded, somewhat sadly. Vaguely wishing their was something he could do to loosen the chains. But the majority of the inquisition disagreed with the leniency that Alexius had been given to begin with. Anything more would be impossible.

“I should go.” Dorian says. “Before someone notices I’m gone, I suppose.” He turned on his heal to leave.

“Dorian.” Alexius called, voice low, an Dorian stopped. “If you truly care about him, then I wish I’d met him under more agreeable circumstances.”

The words struck Dorian hard, his heart started to pound and his feet froze underneath him. He was glad to be facing away from Alexius, because his eyes may have begun to well up with tears.

“You have my best.” Alexius said, slowly. “Though, I know it isn’t worth much.”

Dorian’s hand curled into a fist, and he took a deep breath, forcing the worlds out slowly, careful not to allow his voice to shake. “More than you know.”

He left quickly, closing the door gently behind him.

**Author's Note:**

> Alexius is probably too forgiving in this but it has been months, maybe over a year, so who knows. Given that we really have no way of knowing who Alexius was before he was grief-stricken by the death of his wife (and Felix, of course) all I have to go on are the little things that Dorian says about him.
> 
> In that, I imagine him as having been a great man who cared about Dorian as person and vice versa. This is me writing him as such.


End file.
